Lake Chippewa Flowage Vacation

The Wolter Report (Max Wolter, DNR fisheries biologist, Hayward): As a part of the new experimental panfish regulations now in place on approximately 100 lakes across Wisconsin, DNR fisheries researchers and biologists undertook a relatively simple study to understand more about how much filet weight anglers take home. Researchers collected hundreds of panfish (black crappie, bluegill and yellow perch), weighed each fish, cleaned them and then weighed the fillets. The study showed bluegill fillets weigh only 30 percent of a fish’s total weight.

The results were similar for black crappie (29 percent) and yellow perch (33 percent). The most interesting result was that reduced bag limits that successfully increase panfish size in a lake may actually result in anglers taking home more fillet weight while taking home fewer fish. Results such as these may help anglers reframe their thinking about reduced panfish bag limits – in some cases less may really be more!